I think this novella would've benefited from being full-length. There was a lot of potential here, but the length restricted the exploration of most things, imo.
There were a lot of things I liked. For one, I'm a sucker for second chance romances, so this book was right up my alley. Both these characters were friends in high school but they never acted on it at the time. In the years since, both have had healthy relationships and sex lives, though they have had their ups and downs. I loved the authors decision to not make the heroine be some pining virgin. So, all good things. However, the negative here was that I didn't understand why they didn't explore anything before. They were friends and both liked one another, but it's never mentioned why Nolan didn't express this to Mel before. She had a crush on him, but he was with someone else, so I understood why she didn't pursue him. When Nolan reveals partway through that he'd liked her in high school too, Mel doesn't have much of a reaction, other than split-second moment of shock. We don't get her thoughts because this happens during Nolan's POV, but once we return to hers, there's no reaction to it either.
When it came to the conflict, I understood her hesitance in exploring a relationship, which would put her in a vulnerable position. She was played years earlier when she was in a relationship with a man (a professor), who then turned out to be married, which she hadn't known. She was pregnant at the time, so it made her even more vulnerable. She kept the child, but her trust in men was broken. So, I understood her feelings. What I didn't get, or like, was that, when dealing with Nolan, she has reactions and makes choices that irritated me. After she slept with Nolan at their HS reunion, she slipped out of his bed the next morning and ran for it back home. He sent her multiple Facebook messages afterwards, but she didn't respond to them. When she sees him again, it's at a red carpet event and he's with another woman (who Mel is not a fan of). I disliked her shocked and angry reaction here because what's it to her? I disliked how her reaction here was that Nolan had proven himself to be untrustworthy, just like other men. She pretty much relinquished any and all claim to him when she ghosted on him, so she needs to take several seats.
Also, when it came to Nolan, I felt she was too indecisive. While they're apart after sleeping together, she expresses why she can't/won't contact him at the end of one chapter. Next chapter, she regrets it and wants to reconnect. She sees him again soon after and realizes she made the right decision in avoiding him.
This book also features an eleventh hour crisis, which is one plot device I'm not a fan of and find pretty lazy. I dislike them and rarely find that they add anything positive to a book. In this novella, they seemed to be coming together anyway, so it seemed pretty unnecessary and overly dramatic. I would've preferred for her to overcome her lack of trust for men on her own rather than turning to Nolan because he was there for her in a time of need.